The Eyes Have It Long Questions and Answers (Broad Q+A) WBCHSE

The Eyes Have It (Broad Q+A)

Chapter - 1

The Eyes Have it/ The Eyes are not there

-Ruskin Bond

Long Questions and Answers :

1. How are blind people different from people with eyesight? Why does the narrator feel that people with good eye sight fail to see what is right in front of them?

Ans:- The author remarks that While people with eyesight often fail to see the really beautiful and essential things, blind people take in only the essentials, whatever registers tellingly on their remaining senses.

            As the narrator was blind for a good portion of his life, he had learnt wonderful lessons about blindness. He often noticed that people with sight are worse than those without sight. Although they are able to see, sighted people often fail to see things that they should really see. In the modern, fast and furious world, people see only that benefit them materially but fail to see things that give them endless happiness. This speech of the narrator is very ironical and realistic.

2."Yes October is the best time" -   Who said this and to whom? What is October the best time for? Why according to the speaker  this is the best time?

Ans:- The narrator said this to the girl.

                October is the best time for visiting Mussoorie.

               According to the narrator this is the best time because in October the weather is good, the dahlias are in full bloom, the place is quiet and peaceful because most of the tourists have left. One can sit beside a log fire and drink little brandy. So this is the best time for visiting Mussoorie.

3.“You have an interesting face”- Who said this and to whom? How did the person spoken to react? How did the speaker correct his comment? 

Ans:- The narrator of the story “The Eyes Have It” is the speaker here.

              Narrator said this to the girl co-passenger in the train compartment.

                  The narrator wanted to flatter the girl co-passenger with this remark. He wanted to discover the girl’s looks, but he could not because he was completely blind at that time. The narrator told the girl that she had an interesting face during the train journey. Hearing this remark the girl reacted with a clear ringing laugh. She also told the narrator that she was used to hear the compliment ‘pretty’, now the word “interesting” was attractive.

                  When the narrator came to know that the girl really had a pretty face. He corrected his comment by saying that an interesting face could also be a pretty one. Thus he corrected himself from being insulted.

4. “She had beautiful eyes. But they were of no use to her” – Whose eyes are referred to here? Why were the eyes ‘of no use’ to her? Explain the irony of situation.

Ans:- In the story The Eyes Have It the eyes of the narrator’s co-passenger is referred to here.

             The eyes were not useful to her because she was completely blind at that time.

             From the start of the journey the narrator pretended to the girl that he was not blind. But when he asked the second co-passenger if the girl had kept her hair short or long, the man replied that that he did not notice the girl’s hair. He only noticed the beautiful eyes of the girl which were of no use to her as she was completely blind. The irony of the situation is that the narrator was trying to hide his blindness from a girl who was also blind. Truly it is too pathetic to think about the two blind persons both of whom tries to hide their blindness from the world.

5. Justify the title of the story The Eyes Have it.

Ans:-The Eyes Have It is a short story by Ruskin Bond that was originally published in Contemporary Indian English Stories. The narrator of this story, a blind man whose eyes were sensitive only to light and darkness, was going to Dehradun by train when he met a girl and had a chit-chat with her. Both the narrator and the girl try to hide their blindness. The girl asks some questions while talking with the narrator and the narrator very skillfully answered as if he could see. The girl also succeeded to hide her blindness. It was only after she left and another passenger came into the compartment that the narrator realizes the girl was blind. Here lies the irony in the story. So the title is well chosen.

6.‘But her next question removed my doubts.’ - Who does ‘her’ refer to? What ‘doubts’ does the narrator have?What was the ‘question’ and how did it remove his doubts?

Ans. ‘Her’ refers to the young girl , the co-passenger of the narrator.

                The narrator had doubts whether she had noticed that he could not see.

                   Her question was, ‘Why don’t you look out of the window?’

                 This question removed his doubts because she would not have asked him to ‘look out of the window’ if she had known that he could not see. So her question removed the narrator's doubts.

7.“The man who had entered the compartment broke into my reverie.” What was the reverie ? How was the reverie broken and who broke ?

Ans:- The narrator of the story The Eyes Have it Ruskin Bond was travelling in a train. A young girl boarded the train from Rohana Station. The narrator was much interested to the young girl from the beginning. The girl’s voice moved the narrator deeply. Though he could not notice her face but he apprehended that the girl was beautiful. Her voice was the sparkle of a mountain stream. After the departure at Saharanpur Station, the narrator returned to his own seat. The train started again. The song of the moving wheels began. The narrator sat beside the window. He looked outside and thought the bright daylight. But it was complete darkness for him. He was guessing about what was going outside the window. It was his reverie.

                A new fellow traveller entered into his compartment when the young girl departed. He apologised to the narrator for not being an attractive as the girl. This voice broke the narrator’s reverie.

8.“You must be disappointed.”-Who said this and to whom? When did the person say this? Why did he say this?

Ans:- The new male passenger who just boarded the narrator’s compartment at Sanaranpur station said this to the narrator.

       When the girl had left the compartment, the new male passenger entered the narrator's compartment. At that time, the narrator was lost in a day dream. He was still thinking about the short encounter with the girl. The new male passenger understood this. Then he made the above remark.

                    The young girl, the co-passenger of the narrator was very beautiul and attractive . To the narrator,  her company was very joyful. The narrator was deeply enjoying her company. But at Shaharanpur station the girl had left the compartment. The new passenger who was not as attractive as the girl, took her place. The man felt this and made the remark.

9. Is the narrator somewhat cautious about not revealing too much about himself ? Support your point with instances from your text.

Ans:- Ruskin Bond's The Eyes Have it is a very beautiful story on human perception. However the narrator who was totally blind at that time narrated the entire story tactfully without revealing much about himself. The two major characters the narrator himself and the young girl met each other during their journey by train towards Dehra. The narrator was very eager to know about the girl and to appreciate her beauty as well. But the narrator disclosed very little about himself. Except for his destination to Dehra and then to Mussoorie. He did not disclose his blindness to the young girl. He provided no information about himself. Again when the girl asked the narrator about his being too serious the narrator changed the topic. The narrator actually expressed some of his inner thoughts without revealing much about himself for keeping the readers in the shadow of mystery.

10.Give a brief description of the conversation between the girl and the narrator in the story ‘The Eyes Have It’.

Ans:-The narrator was travelling in a train to go to Dehra. He was alone upto Rohana. At Rohana a girl got into the compartment. When the train started the narrator asked her where she was going. The narrator’s voice startled the girl. However, the girl told him that she was getting off at Saharanpur where her aunt would receive her. She then asked the narrator where he was going. The narrator told her that he was going to Dehra, and then to Mussoorie. The girl then said that she loved to go to Mussoorie, especially in October. The narrator agreed to her and described Mussorrie in the month of October. After that the narrator thought that he made a mistake by asking her what it was like outside. But the girl asked him to look out of the window. The narrator pretended to look out of the window and described the outside scene. After that the narrator told the girl that she had an interesting face. The girl laughed and replied that she was tired of people telling her she had a pretty face. Then the narrator remarked that an interesting face can also be pretty. The girl called the narrator a gallant young man and asked the reason behind his seriousness. Changing the topic, the narrator told the girl that they would soon be at Saharanpur. After that the train reached Saharanpur and the girl got off.Ruskin Bond has presented the conversation of two blind persons in a very interesting manner.

11.What instructions were given to the girl by her parents before she started her journey? Do you think the narrator started to like the girl from the very beginning? Support your answer with reference to the text.

Ans) When the train stopped at Rohana in Ruskin Bonds short story ‘The Eyes have it’, a couple came to see a girl off who boarded the train at the station. The couple seemed very anxious for the girl comfort and safety. The woman gave her elaborate instructions about where to keep her things and where to sit and not talking to strangers. Their concern made the narrator conclude that they were her parents.

  The narrator started to like the girl from the very beginning of their journey together. He was captivated by the sound of her voice and her slippers. The fascinated narrator even described the voice of the girl to have the sparkle of a mountain stream.

12.What was the destination of the narrator in the story ‘The Eyes Have It’? What description of his destination did he give? How could he give such a description in spite of being blind?

Ans) The destination of the narrator in Ruskin Bonds ‘The Eyes Have It’, was Mussoorie.

According to the narrator, October is the best time to visit the hills. In October, the hills are covered with wild dahlias, the sunshine becomes pleasant and at night one can sit in front of a log fire and drink a little brandy. The roads become quiet and deserted as the tourist season gets over.

In spite of being blind, the narrator was able to give a description of the place because his other sense organs were much strong and sensitive. Moreover, the narrator recalled from his memory the glimpses of the hills he had seen years back when he could see partially. He was familiar with the surroundings of Dehra and Mussoorie, which helped him to give a spectacular description of Mussoorie and its surroundings.

13. “…she thought me a romantic fool” – who might be thought a romantic fool? When and why did the speaker doubt so?

Ans) In the short story ‘The Eyes Have It’, during the narrator’s conversation with the girl regarding the beauty of the hills in October, the girl expressed her desire to visit the hills. The narrator became nostalgic and gave a vivid and romantic description of the hills during the month of October. After listening to the narrator’s description of the hills the girl became silent. This made the narrator wonder whether his words had touched her or if she thought him to be a romantic fool.

14.‘But the thought of laughter only made me feel troubled and lonely’. – Why did the narrator feel so?

Ans) In Ruskin Bonds ‘The Eyes Have It”, the narrator’s blindness had isolated him from the rest of the world. He knew that the moment the girl would get down from the train she would forget their brief encounter. He would be shut in his world of loneness and darkness again. The departure of the girl would shut the door to the outer world, which had brightened his life momentarily. Thus, in such a mental state, the thought of laughter only made him feel troubled and lonely.